Neil Romano was nominated by President George W. Bush to be the second Assistant Secretary for Disability Employment Policy and was confirmed by the U.S. Senate in March 2008. As head of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP), Mr. Romano advises the Secretary of Labor and works with all DOL agencies to lead a comprehensive and coordinated national policy regarding the employment of people with disabilities. Earlier this month, we spoke with Mr. Romano about his new appointment, the workings of ODEP and his personal perspectives on disability and employment.

OBLN: Mr. Romano, you now head up the Office of Disability Employment Policy. Could you give us a basic overview of what that office does?

Neil Romano: The Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) is a branch within the Department of Labor. We do a great deal of research and work on the development of policies, procedures and technical assistance to help move more people with disabilities into employment. A lot of our research focuses on the barriers that make employers reluctant to hire people with disabilities – and how those barriers can be overcome. We communicate with business about the value of people with disabilities in the workplace and we work closely with the business community to develop the resources that they need to understand the why and how of hiring people with disabilities.

ODEP is not here to get employers to hire people with disabilities because it is the “right thing” to do or because it is the “nice thing” to do. We are trying to prove and demonstrate to America’s business that hiring people with disabilities is a good thing to do for their business – good for their corporate bottom line.

Many American companies have come to understand the value of workforce diversity but, quite frankly, the diversity picture of any business that isn’t readily hiring people with disabilities is incomplete. We have several programs that businesses can get involved with right away. One of these, the Job Accommodation Network (JAN), is set up especially for employers. Any business can pick up the phone and get free information and technical assistance on employing and accommodating people with disabilities (800-526-7234). Another great program for employers is the Employer Assistance and Recruiting Network (EARN), a free service that connects employers looking for quality employees with skilled job candidates.  Both of these programs are designed to give businesses direct entry points to technical assistance and support in employing people with disabilities.

I have only been in my position for a few months, but, in my entire life, I have never worked with a team of people that I have had more respect for, that work any harder, or that care more than the people here at ODEP.

OBLN: What personal background and qualities are you bringing to the position?

Neil Romano: I am a person who has dyslexia. I have experienced a lifetime of trying to get jobs and not getting them because of my “disability”. In response to that and like many other people with disabilities, I wound up going out and becoming an entrepreneur and starting many businesses of my own.

One of my most important points of understanding, beyond my own experience of disability, comes from my older brother, Robert.  Bob is a Vietnam veteran with a disability. He has a wife and a family and leads a good life, but he has been unemployed for most of his adult life. The sum and substance of all his conversations with me is always “I wish I had work. I wish I had a job.” Your life is never complete until you are given the opportunity to contribute.

I am also a business man. I know how business looks at people with disabilities. More importantly, I know how business does business. I bring that knowledge to this position along with an understanding of the need, desire, and drive of people with disabilities for work. That combination enables me to use this office to better answer some of the questions and concerns of business about hiring people with disabilities.

I recognize the fact that a business has the responsibility to make money and when they don’t hire people with disabilities, it is not because of any malevolence. It is simply because they don’t understand or they have concerns that need to be addressed. I am going to work to address those concerns. Beyond addressing those basic concerns, this office is also going to demonstrate the value and innovation that people with disabilities can bring to companies and, as a vibrant part of the workforce, the value they can bring to this country.

OBLN: Are there any new initiatives that we can expect to see from ODEP?

Neil Romano: We are in the process of developing some even more user-friendly, direct impact resources for business. One of these pieces is the development of the quintessential business case for hiring people with disabilities. ODEP has been working very hard for the last five years to research and investigate the reasons why employers should consider hiring persons with disabilities. We are now assembling the “business case”. In essence, it is a discussion with American employers, similar to what they might get in a business school, which addresses best practices and the bottom line effective reasons for hiring people with disabilities. We are going to present this business case in a very cogent manner. It will respond to the business questions of “Why should I do this? What good will this do for my business? How should I do it?” This document will clearly explain both the “why” and the “how”.

A lot of small and medium-sized businesses, who don’t have extensive HR resources, don’t understand why they should hire people with disabilities. To them, it appears to be complex and difficult. Many larger businesses, however, have already recognized the value in hiring people with disabilities. They recognize that they are in a global fight for talent. They recognize that people with disabilities are an untapped goldmine of talent that has been overlooked. ODEP’s new business case will explain all of that, fortify it with case study examples from businesses that have been doing this effectively, and back it up with the solid research that ODEP has now been conducting for years.

OBLN: Many employers seem to be reluctant about hiring people with disabilities because they are concerned about the accommodations that might be needed. What is your perspective on that?

Neil Romano: Businesses have to think differently about accommodations. An accommodation is no more than what we in business call a “cost of doing business”. When you have someone who is talented, you just do what you have to do to keep them on the job and productive. By making accommodations for anyone, you are just supporting your workforce and getting the most you can from that employee.

I like to tell people who I meet about the people with the worst disabilities in the history of America… people who couldn’t even breath the air, who had to be sequestered in special clothing to protect them from possible infection, who had to have their health constantly monitored, who had no locomotion to move beyond three feet of their boundary, whose swallowing apparatus was so bad that special foods had to be invented for them, and whose ability to communicate was so poor that special communication devices were developed just for them. People are always so moved to hear about this… and then I say “And after they came back from the Moon…they brought with them the innovations and technologies that drive America today!”

With “disability”, all we are talking about is helping people effectively deal with an environment. That’s what we did on the Moon… we helped human beings deal with an environment in which they could not function effectively. The problem wasn’t them. The problem was the environment. Now it is time for us to apply that same thinking to people with disabilities. The new techniques that we come up with, the innovation, the invention, the new ways of doing business, the universal designs… everything that we get out of it, is also going to have applications that are good for everybody.
 

Neil Romano interview continued below... Click Here

Double-amputee Sprinter Oscar Pistorius can Compete for a Place in the Beijing Olympics

Known as the "Blade Runner" and "the fastest man on no legs", Pistorius is the double amputee world record holder in the 100, 200 and 400 metres events and runs with the aid of carbon fibre transtibial artificial limbs. In 2007 Pistorius took part in his first international able-bodied competitions. However, his artificial lower legs, while enabling him to compete, generated claims that he has an unfair advantage over able-bodied runners.

On Friday May 16, 2008 The Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled that the 21-year-old South African is eligible to race against able-bodied athletes, overturning a ban imposed by the International Association of Athletics Federations.

Read more about Oscar Pistorius in Wikipedia

Read more about Oscar Pistorius in Sports Illustrated

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Technical Assistance and Training Resources for Employers - Services of the Northwest Disability Business Technical Assistance Center (DBTAC)

Throughout America, ten regional Disability Business Technical Assistance Centers (DBTACs) provide information, training, and technical assistance about the Americans with Disabilities Act to employers, people with disabilities, and other interested parties. The Region X DBTAC serves the states of Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington. Formerly Alaska's State ADA Coordinator, Don Brandon is the Project Director of the Region X DBTAC.

OBLN: Don, can you please give us an overview of the services available through the DPTAC Northwest - particularly as they might be of interest to employers?

Don Brandon: DBTACs are a nationwide platform for providing technical assistance on the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).  They are transitional programs to assist businesses, state and local governments, and people with disabilities to understand and comply with the ADA. As they learn to comply with the ADA, businesses have to learn to balance their need to be profitable with their obligation to not discriminate against people with disabilities. Recognizing that finding that balance is not easy, the DBTACs were set up as call centers that can provide free technical assistance. if you need to talk to someone with about a business-related ADA compliance issue, (800) 949-4232 from anywhere in the US will connect you to that region’s DBTAC. 

Because of the distrust that can exist between the private sector and government programs, we work hard to build trust with employers and make them understand that we at the DPTAC are really their “buddy” and that our free services of counsel, technical assistance, and training are made available to them without the typical bureaucratic frustrations associated with government programs.

OBLN:  With what kinds of questions or issues do employers typically contact you?

Don Brandon: I’ll give you the top three. The first one is accessible parking and the second one is service animals.  The third one has to do with reasonable accommodation - and that comes in all of forms. 

Their thoughts about accessible parking are a good dip stick for a person’s attitude about ADA compliance. Some people hate it because the parking spaces are sometimes seldom used, some people get really mad at people who abuse it, and some they think there are too many accessible parking places.

With regard to service animals, there is a great deal of confusion among employers and people with disabilities about when service animals need to be used, what kind of animal is considered a service animal, etc.

On the issue of reasonable accommodation, employers need help with the process of determining and selecting accommodations – and understanding the rights of people with disabilities.  Under the ADA, employers have to manage issues that they never thought they would encounter. While they went into business to sell video equipment or to run a gas station, all of a sudden they find themselves having to determine whether or not a person has a condition that requires an accommodation and how to go about selecting the proper ones.

OBLN: Is it true that in addition to your technical assistance service, you also offer training sessions to employers?

Don Brandon: Our office has affiliate organizations in Oregon, Washington, Alaska and Idaho that are capable of delivering services directly to local employers. In holding training events, we work with them and through them. Sometimes someone from our office will also travel and conduct training in these various locations. 

OBLN: So if I was an employer and I wanted some of my staff to be more familiar with the ADA and its implications for my business, I could contact you folks?

Don Brandon: Yes. Because we can’t determine where everyone itches, we mostly respond to requests that we receive. Employers can call in and request a training session at a particular location and, if it’s not too far to travel, we can come in and pay them a visit. 

Because many companies have restricted opportunities for scheduling training (given the numbers of staff that can be freed up at one time, scheduling issues, etc.), we are developing something we are calling a 24-hour online training process. We are posting information on our website that people can access at their convenience.

Both through our national network and in partnership with the Job Accommodation Network, we offer regularly-scheduled audio conferences and webinars on topic areas that are of interest to employers.

Employers who visit our website will find links to many informative documents (in PDF format) which the federal government has developed for employers.  These technical assistance documents all focus on different topic areas such as accessible parking, FAQs on the use of service animals, employer obligations under the ADA, compliance guidelines for restaurants and food services, etc.

Visit the Northwest DBTAC's Website 

Don Brandon, along with fellow staff member Jo Flemming recently wrote an article for employers that is an overview of the thinking behind the ADA the tax benefits and credits that are available to employers for employing and accommodating employees with disabilities. This article, What Were They Thinking?, is now one of the resources on the ADA section of our Website.

Read What Were They Thinking?


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Continued... Assistant Secretary Neil Romano Provides Visionary Leadership for Office of Disability Employment Policy
 

OBLN: It seems that “up close and personal” contact with people with disabilities is the best way to break down employers’ reluctance to hire people with disabilities. Do you agree?

Neil Romano: Any business that I have ever spoken to about their experience in employing people with disabilities has told me that, within a very short period of time of someone being hired, regardless of their disability, the perception of that person’s disability diminishes every day in the eyes of their coworkers. With their environment properly adapted to them, those new employees begin to be seen for their capability and contribution in the workplace – not for their disability.

Having people with disabilities in the workplace is also, in and of itself, an engine of wider social change. Here is how it works: If I have the opportunity to work beside someone with a disability, let’s say Joe with CP (cerebral palsy), I begin to lose my perspective of Joe as someone with CP and he becomes just another human being – just Joe – just the guy who works at the desk next to me. If I later end up at a school board meeting and the discussion turns to young people with disabilities and the programs available to them, I am now thinking about Joe, how competent he is, and how competent these young people can be with the proper education. My input and influence on that meeting is going to be different than it would have been in the past.

OBLN: Under your leadership, do you envision any new directions for ODEP to take?

Neil Romano: My concept is to develop, not just within ODEP but within the entire federal government, an “investment mentality” with regard to people with disabilities. Unfortunately, people with disabilities have never been seen as people that we invest in and we never use that terminology in association with them – because we do not expect a return from them. That is very shortsighted. I believe that we should invest in the progress of people with disabilities. I believe that, in so doing, this country will reap huge “disability dividends”. If you invest in something, you expect a return. I believe that investing in people with disabilities in the workplace is going to produce a remarkable return.

I think that people with disabilities are the next wave of inclusion in this country and the next wave of diversity in the workplace. We have learned from history that every new wave of people that we bring into the workplace – whether they are women, African Americans, new immigrants, or others – brings new markets, new innovation, new products and services – advances that we now can’t live without. I believe that people with disabilities are going to be the next great wave in American innovation.

Here at ODEP, we are going to go beyond responding to the question “Why hire people with disabilities?” into asking the question “Are you risking your bottom line?” for not hiring people with disabilities. We have to recognize that excluding people with disabilities from our workplaces is not something that we can do anymore – not only for people with disabilities, but in the interest of our society as a whole. We cannot afford to leave any talent pool untapped. America’s greatest strength has always been her people. Here is a group of people who, in large part, have been left on the sidelines… and they are dying to get in the game. When we finally let them into the game, they are going to do a lot for this country!

OBLN: Could you comment on the importance and role of Business Leadership Networks?

Neil Romano: Business Leadership Networks are very important. They have the potential, more effectively than any government agency, to change the way employers perceive people with disabilities, both as employees and customers. BLNs have the ability to directly speak business to business. They provide employer-to-employer real-life answers on developing policies and practices that welcome people with disabilities as customers and employees.

I urge all BLN members to consider incorporating disability messages in their advertisements, creating internships for high school and college students with disabilities, recruiting through partnerships with high school transition counselors and college disability and career offices, and to continue creating a corporate culture that welcomes a truly diverse work force. I have recently engaged in several conversations with John Kemp, the Executive Director of the USBLN, and am excited about his leadership and potential partnerships between the USBLN and ODEP.

OBLN: What advice would you offer to people with disabilities who are entering the workforce today?

Neil Romano: Young people with disabilities should throw out any discouraging thing that anyone has ever said to them about what they can’t do. As a young man, I was told not to even consider going to college. My parents were told that, at the very best, I should go to a community college and try to learn a trade. Don’t allow yourself to be looked at through other people’s eyes. Look at yourself, dream about what you want to achieve, and go for it!

Older people with disabilities should present themselves in a confident and professional manner when they interact with business and attend interviews. They need to be confident in their abilities and sell themselves. I have seen too many people with disabilities denigrate their own abilities and talk about what they can’t do. Focus on your abilities. You are a great product. In speaking to employers, sell yourself with confidence!

OBLN: What advice do you have for employers who will be reading this article?

Neil Romano: If you are an American employer and you are not considering people with disabilities as part of your workforce, quite frankly, I don’t believe that you have a truly diverse workforce. You are excluding yourself from some exciting innovation… from a large pool of excellent and talented workers. Right now, only 55% of people with disabilities who have college degrees have jobs.

Hire the right person for your business. The type of disability doesn’t matter. Don’t do anyone any favors. Just hire the right person for your business. Put them in a position where they can achieve and grow. They will achieve and they will grow – and they will likely exceed your expectations in every way. 
 

Click here to learn more about Neil Romano

Click here to visit the website of the Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP)
 

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The Oregon Business Leadership Network
Oregon's business forum on inclusion of people with disabilities
in the competitive workplace and as consumers.
www.obln.org